Although it may look (or feel) that way at first, entrepreneurship is not a lone pursuit. Every individual entrepreneur (and their new enterprise) is part of an existing ecosystem. Ecosystems and the networks within them include customers, suppliers and providers, government and other regulatory bodies, and trade associations. For an ecosystem to thrive, it needs to be inclusive of others who want to participate and contribute, and its members need to be engaged.

Photo by Kauffman Sketchbook

The ecosystem is a community or network rather than a hierarchy. These aspects of the ecosystem are essential for the long-term health of a startup community—driven by the entrepreneur, who is building something bigger than themselves:

Photo by Kauffman Sketchbook

After seeing this, it was clear to me how important community is to success. Prospective entrepreneurs should take a good look at the community, network, competition and support available to them before diving in and launching a new enterprise.